Unfortunately yes- -- Billy's headed for another Cushings test next week.
My early answer on Cushings is yes -- the treatment is worse than the disease. The regular veterinary treatment is to literally get the adrenals to stop producing cortisol (the body's own steroid) by killing part of the gland itself with the drugs. So ultimately ... altho you can manage it for a long time, you just run out of time.
It's the one illness that I have long decided if I EVER had a dog with it, we would treat with homeopathics. It IS a body balance problem, and homeopathics tend to be good for that kind of thing anyway. You might want to GET and read "The Nature of Animal Healing" by Dr. Martin Goldstein.
Homeopathy is very very different from other natural methods and you have to understand it a bit to understand how it can help so differently. GET THAT BOOK -- it's amazing.
That being said ... this also sounds like renal failure problems, and yes, I've been there done that with two dogs.
1. Are you seeing ANY nausea?? I mean ANY reluctance at all to eat anything that is typically enjoyed??? Any turning away to then devour something ELSE? Starting great guns on food only to then shake her head and walk away almost at the bottom of the bowl but then be 'hungry' later?
2. Just a blood panel might or might not show much. You need a sterile urine draw and a complete urinalysis (Antech is now showing micro-albuminaria which is one of the pre-cursors to renal failure). You also need the test for albumin in the urine specificially. Even testing for minute amounts is helpful.
You then compare blood results (and get a whole Super Chem panel -- so you can see pancreatic results and everything - don't just have a senior blood panel done) with urinalysis results. To see if the protein is high in the urine and low in the blood and other things.
3. Fast her before the blood and urinalysis. They've got to get enough concentrated urine to do the test, and you need a very accurate blood test as well. (man, you're reading my LIFE Here right now, know that??? *sigh*)
Now IF you're looking at early renal failure -- then my best advice is TCVM. FAST. There are Chinese herbs that are superb to help the body balance in early renal failure. We caught Foxy's at the very early part and KEPT IT LEVEL for the last 2 1/2 years of his life. That's unheard of in regular veterinary medicine. Once a dog shows ERF it progresses ... FAST usually (and faster in smaller dogs *sigh*).
The teapills I'm talking about are Zhu Gui and You Ghi -- (Left Side Replenishing and Right Side Replenishing) -- and you alternate them .. You Ghi is given in the morning and Zhu Gui is given at night.
Now acupuncture will help BOTH Cushings and Renal problems. Just because I said homeopathy above doesn't mean I wouldn't use TCVM at all -- they can compliment each other a great deal. (I know she knows what I'm talking about from prior conversations, but for those of you not familiar "TCVM" is Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine -- and those Chinese herbals are STRONG and good medicine -- THIS HELPS!!)
Gee I'm sorry -- I'm sorry we both have to know so much about this stuff. I've got something going on with Billy too and by gosh I'm GONNA FIND IT. (Determined face -- man, I am NOT gonna let this slip by me with this dog!)
The other thing you might think about is an ultrasound before you go a whole lot further.
Let me know ... Billy's got a big gonzo vet appt for next week Wednesday (Dr. Bailey's gone all week -- so all I can do right now is fret *sigh*)